The unemployment rate continued to climb to 9.5 percent in June. The net loss of 467,000 jobs was worse than expected, causing stock investors to send share prices down about 2 percent in morning trading.

Despite the sobering employment picture, other indicators still lead forecasters to expect economic growth to resume later this year. Moreover, the pace of job losses appears to be slowing, though it will likely take a while to restore a truly positive job climate.

That's an extraordinary downshift, he says. Until this recession, the total hours worked across the entire the economy have never been in a decline of that length. In fact, they have always increased by 10 percent or more in every 11-year period since records began in 1964.

While the average hours worked by individuals has generally been falling during those decades – and especially fast during recessions – the economy is also typically adding new jobs, so that the total hours worked overall increases.

This recession combines a steep loss in jobs while employers also cut back the number of hours their employees work. Many workers who want full-time work are instead employed part-time. In a dramatic example of cutbacks, many automotive plants in the Midwest are remaining idle for weeks on end. Meanwhile, the total number of jobs in the economy is fewer now than it was nine years ago, the first time that's been the case since the 1930s.

To many economists, the decline in hours worked suggests that gross domestic product (GDP) will decline in the second quarter. But they generally expect modest growth to resume later in the year, as credit conditions improve and a government stimulus plan provides some support. Often, employers will increase hours for current employees before hiring more.

Several other indicators are beginning to move in a positive direction:

• Outplacement expert John Challenger says corporate announcements of plans to cut jobs fell to a 15-month low in June.